For the Love of an Angel
by BalletandBooks
Summary: A new  or sort of new  bird kid is in town, and can Angel handle him. After ANGEL, but she wasn't kidnapped. Niggy, Angylan, Rated T. Sorry, crappy summary
1. Chapter 1

**Ok. So it's an Angel X Dylan thing, but it kind of isn't. It sounds weird, but not really. May include other pairings. It takes place four years after ANGEL but Angel wasn't kidnapped. **

Angel POV

So, after Fang left with Maya, Max was devastated, but found comfort in Dylan. He was fed up with her, though, and left. I don't know what exactly happened, but Max reverted into "little kid" mode, and wouldn't eat, dress, bathe, or do basically anything without help. Because of this, Iggy and Nudge made the decision to ask the government for a little help. Iggy (with a little help from Gazzy) would help them with their weapons, and they would provide us with a house and money in exchange. I went back to school with Gazzy, and Nudge did courses online until she got a High-School diploma and such, 'cause someone needed to take care of Max. That really changed everyone. The neighbors think Nudge and Iggy are married, and are fostering three kids. It shouldn't work, because Nudge isn't even 18 yet, but it does. Iggy looks so much older than 20, maybe 25. They aren't old enough to be parents, or to work, but they do. Iggy works in weaponry and warfare in the government. He goes Monday through Friday from 5-8 and comes home late because of rush hour traffic. His appearance has changed too. He wears thick glasses to divert people from his blindness, and his long hair is chopped off. He looks a little older too, probably from staying up so late to see how he would pay the bills. None of us, besides Gazzy, who had a job ready for next year when he turns 14, worked but him, so it's a lot of stress. Nudge is so different; you couldn't even pretend she was that bubbly girl 4 years ago. She doesn't talk much, and she looks older, acts more mature too. Honestly, I don't think she even cares about clothes, makeup, or food anymore. She was really skinny, even for a bird kid. I think she only cares about helping the rest of us, like Max used to. I think I've changed. I don't mind read anymore. Heck, I don't swim, or even fly anymore! I guess I grew out of being evil. I grew out of being myself. I have a permanent straightened hair (for now) and I wear lots of eyeliner. Max, she's just a different story; I don't want to talk about it. It makes me cry. She can't do anything on her own. Gazzy, man, I don't even recognize him anymore, and he's my brother. I guess he's just being a teenage boy, but he's going through an emo phase. He wears mostly black, almost like Fang, and almost doesn't talk, unless he's helping Iggy with a weapon, or asking for food. All he listens to is ACDC, Metallica, and Kiss. He isn't really a 'Gasman' anymore. I'm the only one who even calls him Gazzy anymore. Everyone else calls him Zephyr. Ugh. Our lives totally suck. Even Nudge would rather be on the run than this, and we all know how much she loves desert rat.

OUR AGES AND CODENAMES:

IGGY: 19: JAMES GRIFFITHS

MAX: 19: MAXINE TORRES

NUDGE: 15: MONIQUE GRIFFITHS (but she isn't really married to him)

GAZZY: 13: ZEPHYR ADAMS

ANGEL (ME): 11: ANNIE ADAMS

The day started out like any other Saturday at my house. Max refused to get up. Nudge tried to get her up. Iggy tried to get her up. They dragged her to the bathroom. Nudge gave her a bath. Iggy made us all breakfast, and I ate while Nudge and Iggy coaxed Max into taking a few bites. They really worked together, like parents, which they had sort of become. Gazzy, though, being the type of teenage boy he is, was still asleep at noon. Just as I was putting my plate in the dishwasher, I heard the doorbell ring.

"I'll get it!" I said cheerily, and skipped over to the door.

"Hello?" I said curiously to the person standing in front of me. He looked to be eleven or twelve, and was an inch or two taller than me. His hair was blonde-ish and his eyes were turquoise.

"Angel?" He said tentatively. I gasped, and then roughly pulled the boy inside.

"How do you know me? How did you find me?" I whisper-yelled at him, terrified on how someone could find us.

No one knows where we live, or our real names.

"I… I…" The boy stuttered. He took a sharp intake of breath and fell over. I quickly checked his pulse.

"Iggy!" I yelled, "Come quick!" Iggy came running, followed closely by Nudge.

"What's going on?" He asked, his unseeing eyes searching the place. He wasn't wearing his glasses now; they were really only for show.

"A boy collapsed!" Nudge exclaimed, and pulled Iggy down to his knees, so he passed his hands over him, feeling over his shirt.

"He's skinny" He said, taking his hands off the stranger. "He probably fainted from starvation."

"Can you fix him?" I said, looking at Iggy hopefully, although he probably didn't know.

"I'm sure, but let me talk to Nudge." He stood up, and grabbing Nudge's hand, pulled her into their room. Although they weren't married, they shared a room 'cause there weren't enough rooms in the house and Nudge thought Gazzy and I should get our own room so we could 'express our creativity'. Two beds, though.

Nudge POV

Iggy grabbed my hand and pulled me into our room.

"I don't think I can support another kid, especially one who probably has mental scarring and will need rehab or something. And seriously, can I take someone who just showed up on our doorstep?" He gave me a look that said 'come on' and I sighed.

"Iggy," I breathed, sharing his burden. "I don't know. I mean, we can't just leave him, can we?" I peeked out the door. Angel had lifted him onto the couch and had a cool cloth over his forehead. "Just think," I said pleadingly, "what would Max have done?" To this, he rolled his eyes.

"Max wouldn't have moved in to a house! Max wouldn't work for the government, Max didn't have to take care of a disabled 19 year old girl and work a 15 hour work day! Max didn't have to do this!" He cried, voice cracking at the end, something it hadn't done since he was 16. I looked away and sat on my bed. When I heard a sniff, I looked up at him, and saw tears running down his face.

"Oh Iggy, don't cry." I said softly, grabbing his hands in mine and rubbing them in between mine. This was so unlike him. I never knew he felt that way.

"Sorry." He said, embarrassed, wiping away his tears. "This is just really hard." He said quietly. "I never had to do anything. Fang and Max always had it under control. Now, it's all on me." I gave him a hug.

"It'll be OK, don't worry." I said again and again until he was done. As he was wiping away the last tears, Angel poked her head in the door.

"Hey guys, there's a little problem here…" She said, and slipped back out.

"Umm… I think we should follow her, don't you?" I said to Iggy.

"Yeah, let's go."

We ran out in the hallway where Angel had the mystery boy lain on the couch. Max was there too, sitting on the floor of our living room, three fingers in her mouth. The boy's shirt was pulled up on his back, and there were wings.

"What the crap?" I said under my breath.

"What's going on?" Iggy whined, "I can't see ANYTHING!"

"Here, you better feel for yourself." I said, and placed his hands over the new bird boy's back.

"Why the crap is Dylan here?" Iggy shouted after feeling the boy's wings. Max seemed to hear and looked up at the word 'Dylan' but quickly went back to the empty gaze she wore since Paris.

"Dylan, what do you mean?" Angel asked, clearly perplexed. "This is, like, a 12 year old boy!"

"No, it's Dylan." Iggy said firmly. "These are his wings."


	2. Chapter 2

**YAY! I'm going to TEXAS on a PLANE! I'll have lots of time to write, though. **

Nudge POV

I can't believe it. It can't be Dylan, it just can't. He left four years ago, and look where that got us. Max in this state, Gazzy, or should I say Zephyr's depression, Iggy's transformation, and, well, Angel in general.

"Iggy, maybe it isn't really him. Maybe you're confusing them with someone else's." I said hopefully. If it was Dylan, I wouldn't want him back anyways.

"No. I'm 100% sure it's him." He sat down with his face in his palms.

"Hey." Angel said in a quiet voice. "Maybe this is what Max needs to get better." She looked at me, because Iggy obviously couldn't see her. "He could give us Max back." Iggy sat back up.

"Let's hope so." He said wearily. Just then we heard a door creak, and a shaggy haired, blonde haired, blue eyed teenager walks past, wearing black sweats ONLY, into the kitchen, fully exposing his wings.

"Zephyr! What are you doing?" I shouted. Max, hearing the noise, covered her ears with her hands.

"Getting some food. What are you doing, examining a new bird-kid?" He shouted back at me. Wow. Moody much? How did he know that, you ask? Well, about a year ago, we figured out that he can see in the near future. He chooses not to tell us when he sees something, so we don't ask when he foretells something that could have prevented problems.

"Wait, what's going on?" Iggy asked. I sighed. I wish he could see sometimes so that we could be more of a team.

"Zephyr just woke up and walked out of his room SHIRTLESS and exposing his wings!" I shrieked, fed up with this boy's attitude. I should be the one with an attitude; I'm only 16, but way more mature. Iggy sighed. He was now the father figure to his former best friend, and felt horrible to punish him at all.

"Zephyr," he said, exhaling. "You got really lucky. The blinds are usually closed. Are they closed now, Angel?" He said, confirming his statement.

Angel responded "Uh-Huh."

"Had they been open," Iggy continued, "You would have been screwed. I would advise you to wear a shirt from now on." Iggy then stood up and walked into our room, probably to go yell into his pillow. I left after him, dragging Max along with me.

Angel POV

You may be saying 'wow! Iggy just chewed him out!' Wrong. That kind of stuff happens all the time in our house. Gazzy will fail a test, ditch, make out with a girl in his room, so on and so on. Nudge will see it and try to yell at him, and when Iggy comes home, he'll yell at Gazzy. Anyways, Gazzy just took a blanket off the couch and slung it over his back. He came out of the kitchen 10 minutes later, probably having eaten 2 boxes of cereal.

"Wha… Where am I?" The boy (or Dylan) said groggily, waking up.

"Hello, boy, or should I say… Dylan?" I said menacingly. Hmm… haven't menaced in a while.

"Uh… how did you figure it out?" He said, scared.

"The real question, Dylan, is how you are so tiny?" I shouted.

"See," He began, after looking around sheepishly, his turquoise eyes finally meeting mine, "After I left, I went back to Dr. G-H and asked him to make me the perfect mate. He said that using my DNA, he would create the perfect match. Instead, he took my brain and eyes and turned me into an eight year-old. So now, I'm twelve." He said, eyes seeming to either sink into his skull or brim over with tears.

"But where have you been these past few years?" I pressed him for more details.

"I've been looking for Fang and Maya!" He told me. I scowled at the mention of them. This was partly their fault.

"So how are they?" I asked, immediately regretting it.

"Their group split, they've done their job, saved the world, and now they've settled down. I think Maya and Fang are having their first child in about 5 months." He said flatly. I felt tears come to my eyes, but none fell. He has officially forgotten us.

"Why did you leave?" I wanted to know.

"They wouldn't have wanted me for much longer, 'cause it's not like Fang knew who I was. They had their own baby to take care of." He said sadly. "They were good to me, though."

"Since you left, where have you been?" Where couldn't he have been was the real question.

"Oh. I've probably been in Virginia or something. They live out west." He said.

"Huh. You've been well, I see." I said, looking at his ribs. "Better than we've been. Amazing compared to us!" I said, practically shouting. "Did you know that nobody's been the same? Did you? Did you!" I said, practically on the verge of tears.

"I'm sorry!" He shouted back, scaring me a little. I hadn't expected him to reply. "I'm sorry I was stupid, I'm sorry I was confused, I'm sorry for everything, Angel. I'm so so so sorry, Angel, because I was just a baby. I'll never leave again, I promise." His voice softened on that last part, and this was almost a whisper. "I'll never leave."

I wanted to look into his mind, to see if what he said was true, but I stopped myself. 'No, Angel' I told myself, 'you can't go back.' I know it's true. There's something good in him. Why I forgave him, don't ask.

"Hey Dylan," I said nicely, "You're welcome to stay." He gave me a big smile, and I left, leaving him on the couch.

Dylan POV

Wow. I'm here. On a couch. Where I'm welcome. This is a surprise. I got up and pulled my shirt down. I was really hungry, but I didn't want to eat anything without asking. I found a door, blasting heavy metal from the inside. This was probably Iggy's. He liked noise. I knocked, and instead found a 5'9 Gazzy staring at the 5'5 me.

"Hey Gazzy, I was wondering" I started to say, before he caught me in a headlock.

"Zephyr." He said coldly, and let me out before he slammed the door in my face. That went well.

The next door was pink, and I'm assumed it was Angel's. I knocked, and heard a voice say "Come in!" I opened the door, expecting Angel, but instead finding an older girl, being forced into putting on a sweater by an extremely thin and tired looking African American girl. Nudge?

"Hey Dylan!" Nudge said in a strained voice, trying hard to be peppy, but failing. "I'm just helping Max into a sweater!" Wait… Max? How could the strong (OK, not at the time) confident 15 year old girl I left be this mess? Her hair was a mess, and she looked as if she wanted to escape, but didn't know how.

Seeing the look on my face, Nudge's expression hardened. "Thanks for leaving, Dylan." She said in a steely tone, and I backed out of there as fast as I could. The next door I tried was open. I walked in.

"Hello?" I said tentatively. As I said that, a man with piercing blue eyes, though a bit cloudy, walked out of the adjoining bathroom. He towered over me, being probably around 6'4.

"Yes?" He said, staring to a point about an inch to the right of my face. Yeah. Definitely Iggy.

"Can I grab some food out of your pantry?" I asked hopefully, expecting a joke or sarcastic remark.

"Of course." He said gruffly, military style. "We need to talk afterwards, though." I almost had to stop myself from saying 'Sir yes Sir' at the end of that.

I walked to the kitchen and grabbed a banana. Mmm… this was so good. I hadn't eaten real food in weeks. As I was sitting at the table, eating the banana slowly, Angel walked in. Her hair was past her shoulder and was straightened. She saw me, and smiled.

"So you're staking?" She asked.

"I don't know." I told her truthfully. Whatever Iggy says. He seems to be in charge." Her face fell, for a second, but she quickly recovered. "Yep!" She said cheerily (or at least an attempt of it) and walked out, again. At that moment, Iggy walked in.

"Ok, time for the meeting." He said, and the family, apart from Max, walked in. "We have to talk about whether we should let Dylan stay or not." Gazzy immediately raised his hand.

"He should leave. He's an ass (a/n I'm quoting Shakespeare!)" He slouched back over. Iggy sighed, and Nudge sat with a laptop, writing it all down.

"I think he should stay. Remember, when he left he was only 8 months old. He didn't know any better." Angel said. Gosh, I owe that girl.

"Ugh, Angel's too nice! I say he can stay, but only if he helps out with Max." Nudge agreed.

"Fine, but he has to get a job when he's 14, because I can't support all of us." Iggy said.

"Ok, I will." I told them honestly.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi…**

Dylan POV

Ok! Welcome to day 1 of camp Flock!

"DYLAN!" I heard as I woke up. I saw Nudge run in, looking stressed. "Please get ready quickly and come to the kitchen, thanks." She ran out in the same way.

I walked to the bathroom and turned on the shower. I saw a toothbrush that had my name written on it in sharpie. As I brushed my teeth, I studied myself in the mirror. Hair: long messy and brownish. Eyes: turquoise. I guess I looked ok. I spit out my toothpaste, undressed, and got in the shower. After like 5 minutes, I got out. I walked back to my room, well actually, the guest room, wrapped awkwardly in a towel.

'Dear Dylan' It read, 'Here are some of Gazzy's old clothes. I hope they work' Gee, thanks! I decided on a tee shirt with a sword on it and khaki shorts. As I walked out the door, little did I realize the Chaos I would immerse myself into.

3rd Person POV

Dylan stepped into the kitchen and had a cereal box thrust into his hands by an exasperated looking Nudge.

"Here," she said, "serve yourself. Bowls are in the third cabinet. We may or may not have gotten milk." He looked at her, and sighed as he went to get cereal.

The once pretty, lively girl had been replaced by a slightly less glamorous version of herself. She was wearing baggy sweatpants, and a tight pink shirt with a sports bra. She had ratty converse on and had a piece of toast in her mouth.

"Hey Dylan? Can you go wake up Ga, I mean Zephyr?" Seeing the scared look on Dylan's face, she sighed and said tiredly "Watch Max for me, I'll be right back."

Nudge walked down the hallway to Zephyr's room.

"Zephyr?" She called. The room was dimly lit. As far as parenting went, Nudge thought she could have done so much better. He was an unruly teenager, and if Max had been there, 'as herself', Nudge thought silently, He could have become a better kid.

The blinds drawn and dust on every surface, clothes on the floor, and posters on the walls for bands that Nudge could barely look at, much less listen to, were pasted onto the walls.

There he was sprawled on the bed… with a girl next to him. It wasn't the first time either. They hadn't done anything, she was sure of it. Just the fact that there was someone in there with him was done to piss off Iggy and herself, and the poor girl was being led along.

Nudge shook them awake.

"Good morning Abby. Clothes, laundry room. Shower is open if you need it. Zephyr, ugh. We'll talk tonight."

The girl, Abby, was a frequent guest, so it didn't surprise Nudge that she was there.

"Thank you Mrs. Griffiths." Nudge twitched. She wished she could be any other 16 year old girl, going on dates and stuff. She's gotta pull it together, though and smiles.

Abby was surprised. Mrs. Griffiths was chill about this. Abby had bright blue eyes, a cute, round face framed with black curly hair, a buttosish, irishy nose, and a smile that lit up any room. Most people's parents, or so she thought, would freak out at their kid sleeping in the bed of someone of the opposite gender. 'It's not that weird' she thought, and grabbed her clothes from the laundry room and claimed the shower.

Gazzy dreaded the talking to he would get when Iggy got home. Maybe he'd be so stoned that he would be out by that time.


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry 'bout that… O Yeah. I have a poll on whether Fang should be brought back into the story as a love for a certain unstable girl or not. Cheers!**

Blast from last chapter: IN depth.

Night fell and Gazzy was in his room alone, as usual. Queen's _Bicycle Race_ blared out of the speakers of his computer. He was reading a book, _World War Z_, by Max Brooks. Hey, Just because he's bad at being good doesn't mean he can't enjoy reading.

"BICYCLE, BICYCLE!" He sang, ignoring the bangs on the wall from Angel. He banged back, and she shouted at him, but he didn't hear her, due to the volume. He heard a bang again.

"Angel, shut UP!" He shouted, and lowered the volume a little.

"It's not ME!" Angel yelled back, irritated. She always had to do this, trying to at least get a couple hours of sleep.

He heard a tap on the window.

"Pssst. Pssst. Let me in Zeph!" Abby Mallory was at the window, even though it was on the 2nd floor.

Gazzy smiled, and let her in. This wasn't the first time this has happened. Frankly, this was an almost daily event.

"God, its cold out!" She said, climbing through the window. Her nose was red and her breath came in puffs.

"Yeah. Is it happening again?" He asked, hugging her as she stood up, brushing the dirt off her black sweats. She was wearing that and a thin, white, loose tee shirt her feet, bare, were red from running through the snow.

"You know it. Drunk as a doorknob." She said into his shirt. She was, after all, only 5'5, normal for a 13 year old girl.

Her father was a drunk. It was a blatant fact. He would blow his salary and get drunk. He would stumble home and would either pass out or get violent. He usually chose violence or insanity, depending on his rage.

He didn't use to be. Until she was 10, she was a normal girl, living a happy life with her loving mom and dad. An accident, though, involving a random truck and her mom on the way home from work, ended the fantasy.

"He was all crazy, calling me my mom and yelling at me to come back." She started to sniff. "I… I just couldn't be in there anymore." She started crying and she sat on the bed. "I miss her so much."

Gazzy's hard exterior softened and he put an arm around her, pulling her in. He knew exactly how she felt. His mom, or image of a mom, was gone, in a sense. As she cried, the song _White Queen (As It Began) _came on.

Her sobs softened and she dozed off her in his arms. He laid her down and pulled the sheets over her.

She was his only friend, he felt. The way he was so comfortable with her, he felt that she could be trusted with his biggest secret, with his life, even. The way the sight of her brightened his nights, even when she was gone by the morning, was a blessing.

He needed her there, he thought, as if he couldn't sleep without her. It was like she was the only person who didn't judge him by how he used to be, but by who he was now. Abby was his life, and hers was his.

Gazzy brushed his teeth and spit in the sink, looking himself in the mirror.

He walked to his room and pulled off his sweatshirt, leaving him in yet another Metallica Band Tee.

As she lay on the left, he laid on the right, and faced away from her. He thought of the struggles of the day ahead and of the past and almost unconsciously, began to cry.

He was, after all, only 13. Only (though technically a teenager) a child. He fell asleep almost as the song finished.

"… _as it began."_

3rd Person POV

Gazzy stumbled out of his room, still half asleep even after his shower. He was wearing a black tee shirt with ripped slim stonewashed jeans and old black converse.

Abby walked out of the bathroom dressed in new clothes. She did, after all, have her own clothes at the Griffiths' house.

"Morning." He mumbled almost bumping into her as she shook out her hair.

"Hey you." She said back, knocking him on the shoulder. He smiled, rare for him, but precious. Abby smiled back, eyes crinkling at the corners. He looked down to her, giving her a small smile, no teeth, just lips. She was wearing her usual 'I just slept at Zephyr's' clothes, skinny jeans, a tank top, and a hoodie, with a pair of Ariel's shoes.

"You good?" Gazzy asked her. She smiled at him and let her head rest on his shoulder.

"Fine." Abby was now accustomed to the business of the house in the mornings, but when she walked in, there was a new face.

"Who are you?" She asked Dylan. He was eating dry cereal and next to him was a jug of milk.

"Dylan. You?" he asked her, equally confused.

"Abby." She walked to the pantry and grabbed a granola bar. Dylan just stood staring.

"When did you get here?" He poked her arm. Gazzy slapped it, and Dylan's hand immediately flew to the sting.

"Last night." She answered, as if it was normal. Since no one seemed to find it strange, he let it go.

Angel strode in, acknowledging Abby and giving Max, who was still there, a hug. She gave Nudge a kiss on the cheek and walked to the fridge.

Inside, it was actually kinda depressing. There wasn't much, so Angel settled on a tomato. Yes, she was gonna eat a tomato like it was an apple.

Abby sat down next to Nudge and began to eat the granola.

Gazzy, being half asleep, grabbed the jug of milk and drank some before spitting it in the sink.

"What the crap was that?" He shouted, suddenly awake.

"Spoiled milk." Angel smiled sympathetically at her brother, who was gagging in the sink.

"Oh, shoot, you guys will be late if we don't leave now." Abby grabbed her stuff, which she often left here, and so did Angel and Gazzy (after he finished making noises). Dylan was thrown a notebook and told to use it until they could go to the store.

"Max, I'm gonna leave you here, ok?" Nudge told Max while grabbing the keys to her van.

Max nodded absently and the kids ran out the door, into the car, and buckled their seatbelts to the 20 minute ride to school.


	5. Chapter 5

**FYI: I update whenever I please, which is every week or so, and in Alphabetical Order. This one is first, then School for the Flock, Then RED or the Dead, then The Outsider, then Try to stand. COOL!**

3rd Person

"So, Abby," Nudge said, looking at her through the rear view mirror, "How's the dad?"

"Fine." Abby replied, and Nudge nodded, not seeming to pick up on the bitter twinge to her words.

"Good." Nudge replied, and for the rest of the ride, the car was silent, except for the shuffling and occasional stomach rumble. It's not that they didn't have enough money to eat; it's just that they didn't have the time to go out and buy it.

As they approached the school, Nudge parked the car and the crew jumped out.

"All I'm asking is no detentions, no suspension, and no calls home." Nudge said, and they all nodded.

"You too, missy." She said directly to Abby, who smiled, embarrassed. Sometimes, the school just called her about Abby too, associating her with the Griffiths.

"Bye, see ya later!" Angel called, and ran off to join a group of girls who looked around her age.

Gazzy turned and stalked away, followed by Abby, who smiled apologetically at Nudge and waved.

"Well, let's go." Nudge said, and Dylan followed her to the main office.

When she walked in, she was greeted by the secretary, a blonde woman in a turquoise coat by the name of Ciara Berry.

"Hello Mrs. Griffiths!" She chirped.

"Hi Mrs. Berry." Nudge responded.

"Oh, who's this?" She asked, peering at Dylan from behind Nudge. He stepped aside and smiled at the slightly chubby woman.

"I'm Dylan… Shepard. I'm 11." And he stuck out his hand to shake.

"Yeah, I'm sorry. I forgot to let you guys know we were going to be taking in another one. He's gonna be in 6th grade with Ariel." Nudge said, smiling.

"Oh, isn't that lovely! Just give me a sec here, and we'll get you all ready, ok darling!" Ciara chirped, and in a moment, had a brand new schedule thrust into Dylan's hands.

"Thanks?" He said, and walked into the hallway with Nudge, waved off by the secretary.

"Bye, have a nice day. Don't get in trouble. I'll see you at four in front of the stairs." Nudge said, patting him on the shoulder and leaving him alone to battle, in his case, the deadly sharks of sixth grade.

**La La La La LINE! A Few hours later: Around eleven….**

Nudge was sitting with Max watching TV, when she got a call.

"Hello?" She answered on the third ring, muting the TV.

"Hello, this is Shena Yates from Sharebrook Secondary School, I'm calling about Zephyr Adams." She said in a nasaly voice.

Nudge face-palmed. "I am so sorry for whatever he did, I wont let it ha" She was saying until she was cut off by the woman's chuckling.

"Mam, he didn't do anything bad, unless you count puking on his math teacher, which could be considered bad, until you realize he still puked about 4 more times." She said, still slightly laughing.

"I guess I'm going to have to come get him, aren't I?" Nudge said, slowly picking her keys off of the coffee table.

"I would hope so. Thanks again Mrs. Griffiths." Shena said, and hung up.

"Stay here, ok?" Nudge said to Max, who secretly wished she wasn't being treated like an infant. There was nothing she could do, though, and just nodded.

Nudge hopped in her van and drove away.

As she walked into the school, she thought to herself, 'this is a first,' and let herself in to the nurse's office, somewhere she previously had never ventured.

**Semi break**

He knew it would happen. From the moment he stalked away, his stomach had started to roll.

'Maybe it's guilt', he thought, 'from being rude', but then he realize that he did this every day, so it couldn't be.

He went to his locker, still feeling the same, so Abby noticed.

"Dude, you ok?" She asked from her locker next door. His face was looking a little more angst-y than usual.

"Yeah…" He said, trying to find the right words. "Just feeling a little off today, that's all."

"Hmm." Abby said, and waited for him as he finished grabbing his books so they could go to English, their first class together. In all, they had the first three, English, Math, and History together, and Art, the last.

He wrapped his arm around her waist. At school, they were officially a 'thing', as Leanna Josephs liked to say. At home… not so much. If at home they knew, they'd be screwed.

His stomach lurched again, and he stopped as they were walking.

"You ok?" She asked, untangling herself from him. He nodded, eyes closed, and when they popped open, he continued walking towards the classroom.

By the end of the hour block, it had been a more recurrent feeling.

Abby walked up to him as he stood up.

"Are you sure you're ok?" He nodded, knowing fully that he wasn't.

"Let's just go." He said, and followed her out the door to math.

Halfway through math, though, he really couldn't take it anymore.

"Sir," He said, going up to the teacher, who was sharpening a pencil at the trashcan near the door. "I feel like I'm gonna puke."

"Ha!" Said the teacher, Mr. Vere Jenkins, a fat man with spiky blonde hair and blue-grey eyes. He was wearing a purple Hawaiian shirt over his large tummy. "I don't believe you."

"Please, Mr. J, I'm serious." Gazzy pleaded, clutching his stomach.

"You think that's gonna get you out of my class?" Vere laughed. "As if I haven't seen that one before!"

"Please…"

"You expect me to believe that!" He laughed, but it quickly turned to a frown. As he said that, the boy did puke all over his prized shirt.

"Yes?" Gazzy said, straightening himself up, before going straight to the trash can.

"You may go." Vere said, and to the kids disgust, removed his shirt.

**Another mini break!**

She hung up the phone and listened to the 'patient.'

"Stupid Iggy. Damn take out. Can't even read the label. Friggin carton..." Zephyr mumbled from the bathroom.

Shena Yates, school nurse, heard the flush of the toilet and the sink run before the lock clicked and the boy stumbled out of the bathroom.

"Sit here." She told him, and smiled.

She was a kind woman, around fifty years old, with wispy brown hair, olive eyes, and a sweet face.

Who she saw in front of her was an abnormally tall thirteen year old boy with a stubborn jaw and a slightly muscled build.

"What ya feelin?" She asked as he sat, and began to prep the disposable covered thermometer.

"Kinda like my stomach is flipping, and my head hurts real bad." He said, looking down. He hated being sick, especially cause it had only started happening when he started going to school.

"Open up." She said, and when he did, she stuck the thermometer on his mouth. After a minute or so, it beeped.

"99… only slight." She mumbled to herself, and the boy slouched lower, if possible, in his chair.

"Damn…" He said, and the nurse rapped him on the knee.

"Language, which may I add, I heard a lot of in there." She chided, flicking her head towards the bathroom, and Gazzy blushed, but only slightly.

"Who is Iggy, might I ask?" She added after a minute. His slight smile turned quickly into something resembling a grimace.

"Foster dad; it's his nickname." He added, sensing her confusion over the unusual name.

"And why can't he read?" She asked. He pursed his lips a little, and licked them, as if he had been expecting the question.

"He's blind." He answered.

"Ahh… and what carton?" She asked, yet again. It was in her nature (unfortunately) to pry.

"Spoiled milk." He said simply.

"Is it hard living with someone blind?" She asked, and as if to answer the question, his eyebrows rose in alarm, and he rushed back into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.

**Line!**

"I feel like I'm gonna die, Nudge!" He whined from the middle row of seats. Gazzy was laying across the back seats of her minivan, (Which she secretly wished was a pink convertible like Barbie's) clutching the trash bag given to him by the nurse.

"Well," she said, "Maybe you should've eaten with us last night instead of taking the leftovers from two weeks ago into your room. Maybe checking the date on that milk would've helped too."

"Soorryy!" He moaned, completely out of character for him, and puked once again into his little black bag.

Nudge winced at the sound. This was gonna be a loonng day.


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry, I've had writer's block… Grr…**

"Nudge!" Silence. "Nudge!" More silence. "Nuuudge?"

"What could you possibly want now?" Nudge cried, opening the door to Gazzy's room. His whining had thrown Nudge crazy for the last ten minutes. At first, she had just ignored it, but then, she couldn't take it anymore.

"Could you give me some aspirin, please?" He asked, surprisingly polite. He usually wasn't.

"Uh, sure. Do you feel any better?" Nudge said, coming in the room and sitting on the bed where his back was to her. He rolled over to look at her, and Nudge saw a glimpse of Max's little trooper.

"Well, not really. I feel like I'm gonna die." He said, opening his eyes a crack and quickly shutting them. He did, though, give an awkward half smile.

"Ok then, I'll be right back." Nudge ran out of the room to the kitchen and grabbed the aspirin and a cup of water. On her way out, Max saw her from the living room and got up.

Max was still there, honestly, she was. It's just that she couldn't tell anyone. She really wanted to tell Nudge something. She wanted to tell Nudge how she thought the pink shirt was ugly and too tight. She walked up to Nudge and yanked her sleeve.

"Max! Look what you made me do!" The cup of water in her hand spilled on the floor.

Max was frustrated again. Why couldn't she just do it? Why couldn't she take it off herself?

Nudge saw her getting frustrated and put down the cup and the two pills.

"Max, I'll play later, I promise!" Nudge said, and Max scowled. She didn't want to 'play', or whatever. She wanted to take the shirt off and wanted to put on a tee shirt. She wanted to fly.

"I swear, Max, give me five minutes." Nudge picked up the glass and aspirin and returned to the kitchen to refill the water cup.

When she came back towards the living room, Max was back in what Nudge liked to call 'The Max Corner'

When Nudge walked back into Gazzy's room to give him the medicine, he seemed to already be asleep.

He was shirtless and still wearing the skinny jeans he had on earlier. His wings were half bent and sticking straight out. He was in a semi-fetal position and had his thumb near his mouth, not in it.

She looked at his sleeping face and remembered the kid he used to be.

**Line**

Dylan had been following Angel like a puppy ever since they figured out that both of them had identical schedules. Angel was walking ahead of him with her friend Maureen.

"Uh, Ariel? Why is he stalking you?" Maureen whispered.

Maureen was a pretty girl, with coffee skin and hazel eyes. She was small and thin, like a ballerina.

Angel peeked a glance back at Dylan, who gave her a small smile, before she looked back.

"Well, he's my new foster brother, so I'm kinda showing him around for the day." Angel told her, sneaking yet another glance back.

"Oh, in that case, why doesn't he walk with us?" Maureen chirped, completely opposite of what she had said just 3 minutes prior.

Maureen left Angel in front of a row of lockers and went back to where Dylan was following.

"Hey, you're Dylan, right?"

Dylan nodded, and gave her a shy smile, which could easily make any 6th grade girl swoon.

"Well, I'm Maureen, and it's a pleasure to have you in Math B with me." Maureen gave her his hand and she led him to their Math class.

The whole exchange made Angel gag. What was this, a soap opera? You say one thing, and do another. Angel scowled and leaned against the lockers.

She closed her eyes, and a minute later, got a tap on the shoulder.

"Excuse me? I think you're in front of my locker." Angel opened her eyes, and the first thing she saw were a pair of soft green eyes.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Angel said, stepping away, surprised. As she walked away, he called to her.

"Wait! You're new here, aren't you?" She looked back. He was 5'5 and had light brown skin and close-cropped curly brown hair.

"Nah, I've been here all year. I'm guessing you're not new either?" Angel said, casually walking back to his locker.

"Nope." He laughed, popping the 'p'. "You must be a sixth grader then."

"Yup." She said, popping the 'p' as well. He smiled at her. She wasn't that much smaller than him. She was 5'2.

"I'm Jules Serafin, 7th grader. Who are you?"

"Oh, Ariel Adams."

He smiled. "That's a cute name." The warning bell rang, and students started scattering across the long hallway.

"Listen, Ariel. Maybe I'll see ya around." He jogged off, and left Ariel standing star-struck.

"Maybe…"

**Line**

"Everybody in, everybody in." Nudge said, and Dylan and Abby got in the car.

Nudge thought she saw Angel wave to someone before she too got in the car.

"So, guys, how was your day?" Nudge asked, checking her mirrors before starting to drive off towards the house.

"Mine was fine, but how's Zeph?" Abby asked from the front seat.

"Oh, he's fine, complaining of death, but he's been through worse." Nudge said absently.

"What do you mean?" Abby asked, and Nudge used her improvisation skills they'd gained through years of lies.

"Oh, when he was 8, he got appendicitis." Angel breathed a sigh of relief.

Nudge noticed something about Angel. She was too quiet today. She had been staring out the window watching the cars pass by.

"Ariel, you ok?" Nudge said, looking at her through the mirror.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She breathed.

"Dylan, how was your day?"

Dylan paused, thinking of the right thing to say.

"Yeah, it was great. A lot of really nice people made friends with me, and this really nice girl Maureen showed me around all day."

Nudge thought for a second. Maureen… Maureen…?

"Wait, Ariel, isn't Maureen your friend?"

"Yeah."

"Ah."

And with that, they pulled up to the house and everybody jumped out of the car.


	7. Chapter 7

**ZOMG! So, school just started, and I'm taking an AP class, as a freshy, so I've had so much homework and since I have to get up at 5:45 every day, I end up falling asleep when I intend to update… I apologize for this, so I will probably be updating this on weekends only for a while. :) Oh yeah, check out my poll, I think it's up. One more note: Iggy has a car that can sense the stuff going around him, so he doesn't crash. **

The kids ran into the house, failing to notice the extra car in the driveway. Once inside, they were greeted by a strong smell of spaghetti.

"James?" Ariel said, seeing the tall man in the kitchen hunched over the stove.

"Ariel?" He said, walking towards the door. She laughed and she ran into him. She barely saw him, and when he was home early, it was awesome.

"Hey Ariel, I missed you." He held her close, and she buried herself in his scent. Although she was more mature, he was more of a dad than Fang would ever be. Iggy too felt like she was his daughter now. He loved her like one.

"Who else is here?" he asked, letting her out of the hug.

"Abby, Dylan, and Monique." She said, putting her hair back in place.

"Ah. Hello, Abby. I'm assuming you spent the night." He said, and she spoke up.

"Yes, sir." She said, and he nodded.

"Make sure you let us know when. We'll see you tomorrow, huh?" He said, discretely telling her to leave, and she got the point.

"Yes sir. Thank you for the ride, Mrs. Griffiths." She slipped out the door. Iggy waited five seconds before speaking again.

"Well, Dylan, did you find school to be nice?" Dylan nodded.

"Yeah… Iggy." He said, unsure whether to call Iggy 'Sir' or not.

"Ok, well, I'm sure you have homework to do." He said, and the two kids scampered off. Although Iggy couldn't see him, having Dylan in his home made Iggy sick. Dylan was a reminder of Fang, and he didn't like Fang.

"Nudge, hey." He said, knowing she was still in the room. He opened his arms and she walked into them, burrowing her face (like Angel) into his shirt.

"Hey." She whispered, and he pulled her in closer, the only noise being the sauce bubbling. There wasn't officially anything going on with them, but unofficially, yes.

"Did Gazzy even go to school? Did he just ditch again?" He asked, and Nudge slapped him lightly on the chest.

"No, he's got food poisoning. The school nurse called and I had to go pick him up." She said, and he nodded.

"I guess I should go check on him, huh?" He said, and began to walk towards the stove.

"Don't worry, I'll get the food." Nudge said, walking towards him and taking the pan's lid from his hands. He kissed her on the head, one of the things they did for each other, and began to walk into Gazzy's room.

* * *

><p>The stairs creaked as he walked, counting the number of steps before he had to walk regularly into Gazzy's room.<p>

"Zephyr?" He asked, opening the door.

"Shh. You don't need to yell." Gazzy whispered, holding his ears. Over the day, the headache had gotten worse and turned into a full blown migraine.

"Migraine?" Iggy whispered. Actually, it was the first time in a long time that he had said anything to him without yelling.

Gazzy just nodded, hands on his ears and eyes closed. He had a shirt on now, 'because the fever made him cold again. He really doubted that this was food poisoning, maybe it was 'kill me now' disease.

Iggy sat on the bed, and after thinking about it for a second, scooted closer to Gazzy and sat him up. Iggy put his cold hands over Gazzy's eyes and held him close to cool him off, removing the sheets he had cocooned himself in. Iggy could remember the last time this had happened. It was when Gazzy got the power of prophecy. He was sick like this for weeks, and it almost killed him.

"Make it go away…" Gazzy mumbled, and Iggy put him down.

"I'll be back later." Iggy said, and backed out of the room.

* * *

><p>Dinner had been eaten and cleaned up. Max, Angel, and Dylan were all in their rooms. Only Nudge and Iggy remained in the kitchen.<p>

He was sitting drinking a beer. Even though he was only 20, he had a drink every time things got too crazy.

"So, you're thinking it's not food poisoning?" Nudge said from the sink, washing the dishes. She took the biggest pot and took it out of the sink, placing it on the towel to dry.

"Uh huh." He said, putting his drink down and his head in his hands. "I mean, I'm no doctor, but I think it's what it was last time."

Nudge dried her hands and sat at the table across from him. "I… I don't think we can go through that again." She said. He folded his hands on the table, and Nudge put hers over his.

"What… What if, he's developing another power?" Nudge said. Maybe Angel got her powers as a child; Gazzy would get his as a teenager.

"I think that might be what's happening right now. I just hate that I don't know how to help him." Iggy said, taking a sip of beer. As he set it down, Nudge picked it up and sniffed it.

"Nope. None for you." Iggy said, and snatched it from her hands. "Not 'till you're at least 18." Nudge squeezed his hand.

"How old are you? Fifteen?" He asked, and she pouted, even though he couldn't see.

"Actually, I'm 16." Iggy laughed.

"When was this 'birthday'?" He said, and she got quiet.

"Actually, it was yesterday." She said.

"Damn. Nudge, I'm sorry, I..." He was saying, but she cut him off.

"No, don't." She said, and she felt tears start to come in her eyes. "All I want is to be sixteen."

"Nudge, I know, I was, like, 15 when I got stuck doing this. I wished I could be normal too." He said, but she pulled her hand away.

"No! You don't get it! You got to be a kid and a teenager! I didn't get to! I had to grow up when I was 12! All I want is a sweet sixteen and cute clothes and I want to go to school and complain about my parents!" She was shouting and crying now. "I hate him! I HATE HIM!" **(a/n him is Fang)**She shouted. She stood up, but Iggy did too, and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Stop. Stop now. You will wake up the kids, and I don't think we need that." Her sobs were reduced to hiccups now.

"I'll make it up to you. When Gazzy feels better, I'll take you out somewhere nice. Just me and you, I swear." He said. He pulled her in to a hug, and she breathed in his scent. She nodded, and at that moment, they knew everything would be ok.

* * *

><p>The windows of his room were open. She climbed up the side of the house and hoisted herself in. At 12, usually he'd be awake.<p>

"Zeph? Are you in here?" Abby said, kicking her feet over the side of the window.

The room was dark, except for the light of the moon streaking through the open window. It was cold, and there was a huddled figure on the bed.

"Zeph? Is that you?" She said, seemingly to no one as she got no reply. She ventured a little closer, and upon further inspection, it was him.

"Dude, are you ok?" She said, and he curled up and covered his ears.

"No shouting." He whispered, and she backed away.

"Are you ok?" She asked again, but this time in a whisper.

"Nuh uh." He whispered, shaking his head, and wrapped his arms around himself. "Cold."

"How can you be cold?" Abby whispered, mostly to herself.

He was wearing a black long-sleeved tee shirt and his jeans with sweat pants roughly shoved over them and coming half up his thigh.

As to respond, he shivered, and by now, Abby was opening his closet door. She had, more often than not, grabbed a hoodie or an old pair of sweats from here, so she knew exactly what she was doing.

After she grabbed a sweatshirt and some pants, she went over to him on the bed. She sat him up, which was hard because he was so tall, she began to try and get the sweatshirt over his head.

"Stay, ok?" She said, and took her arms off from around his back. He swayed, and she quickly shoved it over his head. She put his arms in and began to get him standing. He sleepily opened his eyes, and felt like he was gonna die. He looked like it too.

"Hold on to me, and lift one leg." He tried, but she couldn't hold his weight.

* * *

><p>Nudge heard them. She did, and tried to pretend she couldn't.<p>

"Hey, Ig. I think Max needs help or something." She said, and he nodded, so she slipped out of the room.

"Hold on to me and lift one leg." She heard, and heavy steps.

Nudge opened the door, and Gazzy's hands were on Abby's shoulders.

He shied away from the brightness of the light while Abby looked at her like a deer trapped in headlights.

Nudge felt live a nerd. Specifically, a 'mom' nerd.

"Sit him down." She said, and Abby helped her ease down on the bed. Nudge kneeled on the ground and began to push the sweat pants up his leg. Abby just stood there really. Actually, she kinda sat there on the bed, keeping him conscious.

Nudge got his pants on over his other pants and laid him down, and put the covers over him. Now, he kinda looked funny, his usually thin body resembling a snow man, but black.

"Abby. You can go. I won't tell, but you gotta go now. I think… you can come over after school tomorrow, if he's up to it." Nudge turned to leave, but as she was half out the door, she turned to look at Abby. "Thank you." She said, and slipped out the door.

Abby looked down at him. He looked so… vulnerable.

"Get better." She whispered, and climbed out the window.


	8. Chapter 8

**Writing this happy and slightly annoyed: My little sister has found herself a boyfriend before I have… grr…**

The next morning left problems to fall onto the hands of Nudge to try and fix. She left Gazzy asleep and hoped he would stay that way until she got back from the school that morning.

"Nudge?" Angel asked, walking into the kitchen. She was wearing a big hoodie, probably one old one of her brothers, which was a change from the preppy sweaters she had taken to wearing.

"Yeah Angel?" Nudge looked up from putting the food away. She had gotten up early that morning to go buy groceries.

"Can I ask you a… personal question?" She said, shying towards Nudge, arms crossed over her chest.

"You know you can tell me anything, come on. Do you want a glass of milk?" Nudge took the jug of milk and poured Angel a glass, then sat down at the kitchen table across from her.

"Umm… you know how when you get older… you have to wear… a… you know… bra?" Angel stuttered through the whole conversation.

"Do you want us to go get one after school today?" Nudge said with ease, surprising Angel, who was expecting a much longer conversation.

"Well, yeah, if it's alright with you… I mean, who will take care of Gazzy?" She said, peering at Nudge under her bangs.

"Damn, didn't think of that…" Nudge laughed to herself, looking away from Angel.

"It's ok, Nudge, I'll… just go now." Angel awkwardly walked away, and it was then that Nudge realized it was a school day, and she had to take Angel and Dylan to school.

"GUYS! SCHOOL!" She exclaimed, and the two 6th graders ran down the stairs and into the van. Nudge followed slipping on a pair off Iggy's flip flops, even in the winter, and followed, clutching the keys.

**Line**

The door slammed, and Gazzy woke with a start, similar to the way one with a nightmare would.

His eyes opened, and the light from the window made him have to close his eyes again.

"Hello?" He called weakly, squinting to try and see.

When no one came, he sat up and tried again, and failed. He moaned, and realized that: 1. He was really hot, and needed to get out of the pants he was wearing, and 2. He really had to pee.

Gazzy pushed himself up to a sitting position and panted, his head pounding as he slid up the headboard of the bed. He slid the sweat pants off his legs, and pulled the sweatshirt over his head. Gazzy began to get up, then slumped back. He considered just laying there, but realized his need to go outweighed his need for sleep.

He founds the buttons on his jeans, and slid them off, leaving him in a tee shirt and boxers. He slid off the bed, and ended up on the floor. He got on his hands and knees, and he crawled from his door to the bathroom. He used the sink, and pulled himself to his feet using the sink.

He swayed for a second, then pulled down his boxers and peed.

"Ahh…" He thought.

After he was done with all that jazz, he washed his hands, and exhausted from the effort, sat on the floor.

Finding that the tile floor was, in fact, very cold, and he was very warm, he lay down, and after a minute or so, was falling asleep.

**Line**

"Bye guys! See you after school!" Nudge shouted as the kids were getting out of the car.

"Wait, Nudge, don't you have to tell the school that Ga- I mean Zephyr isn't gonna be here?"

Nudge groaned, and turned to look at Angel, who was half out and half in the van.

"Can't I just call?" Angel shook her head.

"New policy. Unless someone comes in, they assume you're lying."

Angel hopped out of the car, and Nudge grumbled all the way to the parking lot, parked the car, and dragged herself from the car to the main office, where she was given awkward looks for the ridiculous outfit she was wearing.

**Ok… so this was an epic fail… I'm having a tad bit of writer's block… yeah. Sorry, and I'll try to get back on it, I swear!**


End file.
